TITLE: Santa Wishes
AUTHOR: jenbachand
PAIRING: Grissom/Sara
RATING: General
SPOILERS: Sort of through the first part of Season 9.
DISCLAIMER: I made no money from the writing of this fic.
SUMMARY: Sara makes a list for Santa.
NOTES: This is my lj group bestkept private Secret Santa fic for sidlechick87. Beta'd by the always kind and lovely mingsmommy.
The sun was setting again and the lingering warmth on her face made her smile. Sara was beginning to understand the appeal of the whole pirating thing. After all it was the solstice and not a cold breeze had touched her skin. Some of the grad students had strung Christmas lights up around the boat and Christmas carols softly wafted up from the galley every night when she took her turn at watch.
Cold weather made you want to cuddle with someone to get warm, and Sara had no one to cuddle with or any desire to make a new cuddling friend.
She sighed as the dinner bell rang out. Another Christmas season was upon her, and she was feeling a lot like Elvis these days. Having a Blue Christmas seemed to be her norm.
The crew were laughing and singing a rowdy chorus of Jingle Bells when she made her way down the stairs. The captain waved her over to his table and handed her a green sheet of paper and a Sharpie.
"Everyone's doing Christmas lists. So you just sit down here next to me and write what you want Santa to leave in your stocking this year young lady," he said. Smiling brown eyes looked up at her from the sun leathered face of the captain. Mike Brown had been fighting the good fight since he first took up eco-pirating back in the sixties. He was a big man, with hands that were rough and a heart that overflowed with compassion for everything living.
"You know, I haven't believed in Santa since I was about five," Sara smiled and took a seat across from him. There was a stocking drawn on the paper with a blank list printed within the borders.
"Humor an old man," he said as the plates of food began making their way around the room. Quite a few vegetarians routinely did a rotation on the ship, so her diet hadn't had to suffer during the voyage. "Besides, no one will see it but you and the Goddess. We're going to burn them with some offerings at dawn. So if you want a pony, just keep in mind there's only so much room down in the hold."
His wink convinced her to play along. After all, what could it hurt?
Sara finished her list and tucked it into her back pocket. No sense in leaving it out and tempting the fates to throw it up in her face that she was alone again.
As the evening progressed towards the dawn, the crew assembled to welcome the new season and offer up their wishes. Though Sara watched the others laugh and toss their lists away, she couldn't bring herself to get rid of hers, and after wishing the others a good day, she headed down to her cabin for some well deserved rest. She tried very hard not to think about the list of wishes tucked firmly under her pillow.
"We'll be picking up a new crew member when we dock tomorrow," Mike commented to Sara as she was running samples the next evening.
"A new grad student?" Sara asked never raising her head from the microscope.
"No, a new scientist coming on for a while. Botanist or something I think," he was watching Sara with a sly smile, but her eyes remained focused on the microscope. "He's going to spend a few weeks on the ship, but then is planning to be based out of the field office."
"Ok. Hope he doesn't spend the first week sicking up all over the place like I did," Sara finally looked up with a grimace. That had been one of the more memorable weeks of her life, and not in a good way, but considering her past, not one of the worst either.
The answering chuckle followed the captain up the stairs as Sara spent a minute remembering her first week on the ship. Heartsick and unsure the future, her sea legs had been a long time coming, longer than she had planned on. Sleeping had helped, but anytime she was vertical that first week, she was usually heaving. A hard week, but her abs had been in great shape after her first seven days.
They had docked just as dawn was breaking through on Christmas day. The sunrise had been beautiful. A deep violet that had eased through the colors until the orange of the sun had peeked over the horizon, and other than the gaping hole in heart that should have been filled by Grissom, she felt that life was pretty good. And a few days of beach exploring, sleeping late and exotic food were all she had on the agenda.
Every time she slid into bed, her hand would touch that list of wishes, and she'd go to sleep with fanciful thoughts dancing in her mind.
The second day in port, Sara was not up and out of bed like she had planned. The Land of Nod was fulfilling her Christmas wishes and she was enjoying her dreams so much, she was loathe to wake. In her dream she was snuggled up to a very warm and comfy Grissom, the warm firmness of his body chasing the chill of loneliness away. The dream was so vivid, so real, she could even hear Hank snuffling around in the room as he attempted to identify every speck of dirt with his nose.
Sara slowly stretched and hit something, or rather someone. Panic filled her and she was up and out of the bed before her eyes were fully open.
The barking and jumping of a very happy boxer male were accompanied by the amused smile and gentle admonishment of human male. Grissom, live and in the flesh was there, in her cabin.
And he looked like hell. When had he lost so much weight?
"What? How? I…"
"I'm the new scientist."
She gaped at him. Was he real or just another dream? "What? What are you doing here?"
He looked resolute and frightened at the same time. "I couldn't not make a decision anymore. There is too much of life that I want to experience with you." Hesitantly, he took her hands in his and brought them to his lips. "I hope I'm not too late."
"Never," Sara gulped out and kissed him. His beard was rough against her face, but it fazed her little. Her tears were a salty balm soothing her soul, warm and wet and so very welcome.
Later as they lay in bed, bodies cooling from the gentle sheen of sweat that their lovemaking had brought about, Grissom slid his hand under Sara's pillow to wrap around her, only he encountered something not made of cotton.
"What's this?" he queried as he pulled out the folded paper.
"Um," she was blushing, he thought it was adorable. "My Christmas list. Mike made us fill one out. I couldn't bring myself to burn it with the others."
He unfolded it and slowly read it over.
"I'll see what I can do about the rest of the list, but I can promise the last two are yours for as long as you'll have us."
All I Want For Christmas…
Fuzzy Socks
New Jeans
Sturdy Hiking Boots
Grandma's Banana Bread
Magnetic Board Games
Some New Books
To Talk to My Friends
Harsher Laws to Preserve the Environment
Harsher Sentencing for Criminals
To Continue Feeling Better About Myself
Soft Sheets
Hank Warming My Feet
Grissom In MY Bed